On St. Patrick’s Day, it’s a must to wear green. Help your child make her own shamrock necklace to get in the holiday spirit. Materials needed:· Green construction paper· Hole puncher· Scissors· Pencil· Yarn What to do: Step One: Help your child decide what type of necklace she wants to make. For example, she can have many little shamrocks going around her necklace, one big shamrock in the middle, or all different sizes together....

Create a picture of a cool, snowy afternoon without having to step outside! Materials Needed:· Shaving cream (foam)· White glue · Construction paper· Food coloring (optional)· Small plastic bowl (one per color)· Small paintbrush (or Q-tips) What to do: Step One: If you’d like your snow painting to have color, mix a small amount of glue with a drop of food coloring in a plastic bowl. If you’d like your painting to appear white, do not add any food coloring to the glue....

What Professionals Recommend In the first few weeks after your baby is born, it’s better to breastfeed from both sides at each feeding. Breastfeeding on both sides will help to stimulate the production of breast milk while you’re establishing your milk supply. It can also prevent some common problems of breastfeeding such as breast engorgement, plugged milk ducts, and mastitis. After about four to six weeks, when your milk supply is well established and your baby is gaining weight well, you can then choose the feeding method that works the best for you and your child....

Overparenting usually stems from a parent’s desire to manage their own discomfort, as they can’t tolerate watching their child get hurt, fail, or make a mistake. At other times, parents feel guilty about disciplining their child and refuse to enforce consequences. Ongoing hypervigilance and overindulgence can have serious consequences—such as stunting a child’s development and causing a child to become overly dependent. If some of these warning signs sound familiar, you may be overparenting your child....

Children deal with school stress, bullying, friend drama, grief, and more throughout childhood. Sometimes children are embarrassed or scared to tell a parent or caregiver that something is wrong, and other times the adults in their lives are unsure if a problem is fleeting or something more serious. Fortunately, there are a lot of options for parents or caregivers when it comes to finding help for their children. Whether you seek help from a pediatrician, a school counselor, or mental health professional, no parent should feel alone when it comes to protecting their child’s mental health....

Trust me; there are many, MANY changes ahead once you have a newborn around the house. One of those changes, if you and your partner are workout buddies, might be figuring out how to exercise as a couple. Pregnant women can still exercise. They just have to be careful not to do anything that’s too strenuous, gets their heart rate up too high or increases their body temperature too much....

Following are some simple strategies that can help bring your diet into balance. In fact, these strategies are so simple that people often dismiss them. But don’t let their simplicity fool you — they are very powerful. By implementing the following guidelines, you will automatically get more of the antioxidants, phytochemicals, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients that your body needs, and less of the harmful fats, sugar, salt, and calories that you don’t need....

In fact, a new scientific statement seeks to raise awareness of the condition in youngsters. The statement, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, states that obstructive sleep apnea may adversely impact adolescents’ heart health, and can also lead to issues with high blood pressure. It is critical that parents be aware of what symptoms to watch for, and know how to help their child manage obstructive sleep apnea....

Overall, your teen’s sociometric status is an indicator of how they are viewed by their peers. Researchers measure sociometric status to better understand the behaviors and outcomes of kids who have different types of peer relationships. Sociometric status is also known as peer status. Your teen’s sociometric status can affect their future in terms of social functioning in both friendships and relationships. Sociometric status may also have a bearing on how your teen views themselves....

Directions These rhymes can be used by individual jumpers and by children jumping in groups. Twirl the rope very fast after saying the word pepper and count to see how many fast jumps the jumper can make before he trips. Mabel, Mabel, set the table Just as fast as you are able. Don’t forget the salt, sugar, Vinegar, mustard, red hot pepper! One, two, three, four, five… Mother sent me to the store....

But plenty of adults practice martial arts, and some like me even start in their thirties, forties, and later. And you can, too. Why Study the Martial Arts? Most of the people I’ve met in adult classes joined with their kids. And it’s true. Martial arts can be a fun way for families to spend time together and get some exercise. But there are many other benefits of martial arts training....

If you have hired a full-service attorney, he or she will decide when to start legal divorce proceedings, usually based on a number of different factors. Maybe you need some kind of immediate relief, such as support, and your spouse has refused to provide it. If you are fully represented, your lawyer must go to court and ask a judge to order your spouse to pay. The only way the lawyer can go to court is to first start a divorce action, and therefore you would be the plaintiff, or petitioner....

Would you support a policy allowing physical punishment in your school? Thirty years ago, I was a student at Henry Clay Junior High School in Los Angeles, and I have vivid memories of being told to bend over and grab my ankles while a teacher administered three blows with a paddle. When I think back I can’t remember why I was punished and the only thing it taught me was to loathe that teacher....

Things Parents Should Know About Heelys Although kids rarely go fast using the heel wheel, this sought-after class of footwear isn’t without its risks. They likely aren’t any more dangerous than ​​skateboards, scooters, or inline skates, but kids do seem to get the same injuries when heeling. Research studies found that kids using Heelys occasionally experienced serious injuries including “distal radius fractures and elbow injuries” and that one patient even had a head injury that required surgery....

Teens are awful, thoughtless, and impossible. Teens from “broken” families get messed up with sex, drugs, and criminal elements. The stress of a stepfamily added to the normal stresses of adolescence lead to depression, eating disorders, and suicide. Here are the realities: Adolescence is a time of stress, and, yes, your stepteen may be awful and cruel at times. A new stepfamily doesn’t make it easier (but may not make it harder, either)....

Look for sturdy toys such as stitched dolls, wooden blocks, and puzzles with heavy pieces. Provide play and playthings that offer new experiences. Store toys where your child can get to them easily and without help. Keep parts stored together (an end of the day task) so you don’t lose any parts. Consider if you are buying something that will require special care or arrangements. Keep safety in mind. A good rule of thumb for children ages 3 and under is to avoid anything that can fit through a toilet-paper tube....

To make matters worse, the pandemic has created even more stress for working parents than in the past. According to research by the Pew Research Institute, 52% of working parents with children younger than 12 say it has been difficult to balance work and child care responsibilities during the coronavirus outbreak. And, more than a third of parents say that trying to balance both work and family has become even more difficult in the midst of the pandemic....

Swimming lessons are a simple solution for keeping your child safe. This leads many parents to question when their kids can start swimming classes and what types of lessons are available depending on the age of their child. We have the details to keep you from floundering! When To Start Swim Lessons According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children should start working on their swimming skills and learn swim safety as early as their first birthday....

Symptoms Children who have growing pains usually do not have any other symptoms, such as weight loss, limping, fever, or joint swelling, and the pain shouldn’t limit his activity.​ Treatment If you are able to treat the pain when it occurs and your child is then fine for some time until the pain begins again, then that can be normal, depending on how often it is happening. In both boys and girlsIn both legsIn the front of the thigh, in the calf muscle (the back of the lower leg), in the muscles in the back of the knee, and in the heel of the footIn children between the ages of three and five and between the ages of eight and 12 In more than 30 percent of children...